Friday, November 27, 2009

Penny wise Pound wise

When it comes to greed or avarice- one of the seven deadly sins- we Indians do not lag behind. We, as businessmen, small or big are out to fleece our customers/clients, especially foreign ones, throwing all morals and ethics to the winds. But things have changed now and the foreigner travellers have become wiser. Gone are the days when an Englishman or any European tourist for that matter, while eating at a dhaba or a restaurant would pay a tip of Rs. 80/- against a bill of Rs. 20/-, telling the waiter to “keep the change.” The fact of foreigners having become wiser was brought home to me by an incident that occurred a few years back. One fine morning , when I was on way to Nalagarh from Bilaspur on official tour in a Govt. vehicle ,I stopped to have a cup of tea in a roadside dhaba. A foreigner, sensing that the dhaba walla was charging him more than he was supposed to, started a dialogue with me:“ Excuse me please!”“ What can I do for you ?” I said.“ I think he is charging me more.”“ What have you taken?”“ Two chapattis , some vegetable, and a cup of tea.”“ How much is he asking for ?”“ Rs. Seventy.”

Visibly shocked, keeping in view the rates prevailing at that time, I made some mental calculations and asked him to pay Rs. 20/-.The guy was quite grateful and happy,and after making the payment, rode his bike and left for Manali.I gave a bit of my mind to the attendant at the dhaba- since the owner was not there- and advised him not to overcharge in future. All this left a bad taste in my mouth and I could not enjoy my cup of tea.